Fans of Legendary's MonsterVerse have a lot to look forward to in the coming years. Netflix has an animated Skull Island series on the way, a sequel to the city-leveling battle of Godzilla vs. Kong is due out next March, but before that, we could see the release of Apple TV+'s untitled Godzilla and the Titans series. Announced in early 2022 from creators Matt Fraction and Chris Black, the ambitious show will follow a family's quest to unveil the secrets of the monsters and explore their connection to the secret organization Monarch. Bringing it all together is a talented TV creative in WandaVision's Matt Shakman who has big plans for the 10-episode series.
Shakman recently spoke to Collider's own Steve Weintraub for his new Prime Video series The Consultant, and he talked a bit about the Apple series and its place in the wider MonsterVerse as well as the behind-the-scenes aspects of creating a large-scale Godzilla show. With regard to the story, Shakman wanted to keep it under wraps where the series lands in the timeline as it's crucial to the overall plot. "You know, I can't really say because that's part of the joy of it is, actually timelines [are] a big part of the storytelling," he said. "So I just want to say that's part of it, but I can’t really say more than that."
He'll helm two of the episodes in what's expected to be a very expensive affair. It's no small feat to bring Godzilla to screens. Through his and the other Titans' pure size, budgets often run high when trying to portray the King of Monsters in all his glory. For reference, Godzilla vs. Kong boasted a staggering production budget estimated at $160 million, making it one of the cheaper entries in the Legendary MonsterVerse which kicked off in 2014. Shakman was asked about the budget at his disposal and how much VFX played into the conversation of making the series. He teased that even though money was a part of everything, Godzilla and the Titans will get plenty of screen time. He said:
It is, it's a part of everything, obviously, no matter what the scale of something. You always run out of money eventually, even if it's Harry Potter or Star Wars, Star Trek, Godzilla, you run out of money. But it's less about carrying out shots, although eventually, you have to do that, and more just about storytelling. You know, how much was Godzilla going to factor into the story, and he has a very important role to play, and how he factors into the series is a big part of it. So that was the bigger driver, and he's not the only Titan that you're gonna meet along the way. So there's, yeah, there's a VFX conversation constantly happening in that.
Shakman's Series Won't Have Major Overlap With the Upcoming Film
Afterward, Shakman was asked about whether he collaborated with the movie team helmed by director Adam Wingard. Considering both the show and untitled sequel film are produced by Legendary and follow-up Godzilla vs. Kong in their own ways, there was bound to be some conversation between the two teams regarding the future of the MonsterVerse. According to Shakman, however, both are largely sticking to their respective projects. He teased that, while there will be shared elements between the series, it's far more self-contained than anyone hoping for an MCU-level connection might expect:
There is some overlap, though we were not heavily involved in talking about it with Adam Wingard and his team. Legendary is the studio for our show, as well as for the films, and so they sort of sit at the juncture there between the two, and they have a mythology department there which is wonderful. So they weigh in on how things might overlap, how certain creatures need to stay on one side or the other, and so there is a lot of conversation about it. But in terms of how closely the narratives overlap, it's not as involved to say, an MCU kind of Disney+ film crossover. It's less organized.
It shouldn't be long before we hear more about a release for the Shakman-helmed Godzilla series. He revealed that they're currently in post-production with a few months remaining to string it all together. As is the case with Legendary's MonsterVerse, he has an All-Star cast at his disposal featuring Kurt and Wyatt Russell alongside Anna Sawai, Ren Watabe, Kiersey Clemons, Joe Tippett, and Elisa Lasowski.
Stay tuned here at Collider for more on Apple TV+'s Godzilla and the Titans series and keep an eye out for our full interview with Shakman.